Update on Penn School

I have taken a close interest in developments relating to Penn School. I agree with many of my constituents that the administration of the failed Rayners Special Education Trust and the future use of the school site are matters of public interest.

I have no direct authority over either the administration of Rayners Special Education Trust by Deloitte, or decisions over the school site’s future. However, I remain in contact with relevant bodies in the hope of ensuring a satisfactory conclusion.

Deloitte has recently issued a progress report to creditors on its administration of the Rayners Special Education Trust. The report can be read here.

The key points made by the report are:

[Click for PDF]

The final costs of the administration have been settled.

The administration was previously extended by secured and preferential creditors for six months ending 6 January 2016, and more recently by the Court on 6 January 2017 for a period of twelve months.

The administration will end once the necessary forms are filed with Companies House and the Court.

The joint administrators’ receipts and payments account, which sets out how money has flowed, can be found on page 6 of the report. Most of the money raised from the sale of the land and buildings of Penn School has been used to repay outstanding debts to creditors. Any questions on this matter should be raised directly with the Administrators.

About £3 million will be returned to the trustees to pursue the charitable interests of the Trust. How the trustees achieve that is a matter for them. However, they are bound by law to pursue the objects of their charity, so we can expect them to support to the education of children with communication difficulties. Again, this matter is rightly outside of political control but I hope the trustees of the former school will use the remaining assets to the satisfaction of all interested parties.

The Department for Education confirmed in May 2016 the site had been purchased by the Education Funding Agency (EFA). I look forward to the EFA announcing how the use of the school site will be taken forward.